The Philippines is taking steps to mend its relations with China, but emphasized that it will not drop its arbitration case against Beijing, Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario said on Thursday. Relations between the two Asian neighbors plunged to its lowest when the Philippines sought arbitration in January 2013 to try to declare as illegal […]
China’s East Sea policy has a clear delineation between short term and long term. The strategy to maintain a continuous presence in the undisputed waters to gradually turn them into disputed areas has been resolutely pursued by Beijing. The 981 oil rig incident is a typical example. China used this oil rig as a “mobile […]
As part of a broader project of land reclamation, beginning in November China started efforts to develop Fiery Cross Reef in the Spratly Islands. As of late November the reef had been built up to 3,000 meters long and between two and three hundred wide. This makes it large enough, in the assessment of analysts […]
From the air, the Spratly Islands, a cluster of miniature rocks and sandbars 425,000 kilometres square in the middle of the South China Sea, are almost imperceptible. Even up close, the Spratlys do not look like much – a few islands have tiny rocky beaches or occasional makeshift buildings. A tiny contingent of Filipino marines […]
There has recently been a touch of disagreement on this site between Linda Jakobson of the Lowy Institute and Bonnie Glaser of CSIS about the motivations for China’s actions in the South China Sea. In short, Jakobson argues that China’s decision-making can be explained by bureaucratic competition between China’s various maritime agencies, whereas Glaser says […]
BEIJING: China on Monday hit back at the Philippines for criticizing Beijing’s ongoing reclamation project in the disputed South China Sea, saying that its actions were within the scope of Chinese sovereignty. China lays claim to almost all of the entire South China Sea, believed to be rich with minerals and oil-and-gas deposits. Brunei, Malaysia, […]
Reuters) – China on Monday hit back at the Philippines for criticizing Beijing’s ongoing reclamation project in the disputed South China Sea, saying that its actions were within the scope of Chinese sovereignty. China lays claim to almost all of the entire South China Sea, believed to be rich with minerals and oil-and-gas deposits. Brunei, […]
China’s reef reclamation and development projects in the disputed Spratly islands in the West Philippine Sea last year have progressed by leaps and bounds, and security officials expect them to be turned into man-made islets ready for occupation by Chinese military personnel and civilians. Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Pio Gregorio Catapang confirmed the […]
MANILA, Philippines – By turning to international arbitration to define its maritime entitlements in the South China Sea, Manila has shown there are options to resolve territorial disputes other than lopsided negotiations where mighty nations lord over small ones. Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr. voiced the observation in a speech during […]
From the Department of Foreign Affairs The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) launched today the digital version of the pamphlet, “Ang West Philippine Sea: Isang Sipat.” “Ang West Philippine Sea: Isang Sipat” was jointly developed by the DFA and the Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) to serve as an accessible and comprehensible […]